Was Harvey the bad guy...again?

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In a 3.25 piece called "How (and Why) Anthony Minghella's Talent Wasn't Quite Fulfilled," New York critic David Edelstein fingers Harvey Weinstein as...well, not quite the central villain in the life of the just-deceased British filmmaker, but some kind of messy meddler and spiritual usurper.

"Now that the shock of Anthony Minghella's sudden death has dissipated slightly," Edelstein begins, "I think it's less unseemly to say that this brilliant and soulful filmmaker died unfulfilled. And I can't help thinking that what happened has something to do with someone whose name rhymes with Shmarvey Shmeinstein.

"I am not remotely suggesting here that Minghella sold out and became a Hollywood hack: Every one of his films was an attempt to merge his own bold, socially committed sensibilities with the insistent demands of his shmasters. But why did he complete only six films (counting one in the can) in the eighteen years between Truly, Madly, Deeply and his death? Where were the gutsy little modestly budgeted movies -- good or bad or uneven -- that could have kept him rooted?

"Anthony Minghella was only 54 and might have had a quarter-century left to break new ground. His passing robs us of the movies he might have made and leaves behind a cautionary tale. It's not that he was forced to make crap. It's not that his movies were entirely mangled by big hairy paws. It's that an artist who could have set an example for gutsy personal filmmaking surrendered his autonomy -- as so many others have done -- in the name of someone (or shmomeone) else's ego."

For what it's worth, my sense of Minghella is that on some level he was at least half-comfortable with not being the most prolific filmmaker of all time. He was a beautiful man in many respects, but I think he liked to live well. He loved the aromas and textures and ecstasies of day-to-day living as much as (and perhaps a tiny bit more than) the rigors and tortures of creation.

For whatever reason Edelstein's description of the Anthony-Harvey dynamic has reminded me of the relationship between Rod Steiger's Komarovsky and Omar Sharif's Yuri Zhivago.

comment #1

BurmaShave says ...

TRULY MADLY DEEPLY, THE ENGLISH PATIENT and THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY... you know what, I'm not even going to respond to this scumbag.

comment #2

crsryan says ...

This Edelstein piece has me up in arms. I read it as very dismissive of a great artist's career. The whole lame "schmompany" gags that run throughout are bad enough for what's essentially an artistic obituary, but it also strikes a note of dishonesty -- it reads like he wants to write a pan of Minghella's work but blame that failure on Weinstein, which is absurd, not to mention wrong-headed since many critics, myself included, think Minghella one of the most accomplished and underrated filmmakers, well, ever. And considering his budgets, he wasn't that unprolific either. I'm totally on board with the too-little-too-late revisionist praise for Truly Madly Deeply that's come about lately, but I have to agree with Jeremy Smith that for too long, appreciating Minghella was "tragically unhip" and let's face it, liking Minghella means appreciating his two masterpieces, The English Patient and The Talented Mr. Ripley. Yes, they are both masterpieces of cinema. Had I an appropriate venue, I would go on at length about how stunning those two films are and take Edelstein's piece apart line by line, but I'll just leave it at saying that I once heard Minghella talk at length about The Ninth Life of Louis Drax and I have a strong feeling that, had that project come about, all doubt about Minghella fulfilling the depths of his talent would have been silenced.

comment #3

Jeremy Smith says ...

"Do I have evidence? Peter Biskind’s chronicle of the indie movement, Down and Dirty Pictures, provides some. But I’m less interested in what happened behind the screen than in the compromises in front of it."

And then he proceeds to cite that fucking SEINFELD episode as evidence of THE ENGLISH PATIENT's "compromises". Airtight stuff there, Edelstein.

comment #4

Richardson says ...

I dig Minghella's movies, but he wouldn't have been able to make his best movies (Ripley certainly; I'd include Cold Mountain as well) if Harvey hadn't bought him an Oscar for 'English Patient'.

Miramax bought that movie out of turnaround, let him cast who he want, and then promoted the shit out of it and pushed hard enough to get it an Oscar in a crowded year.

Harvey does plenty to deserve ire, but I don't see how he hurt Minghella's career at all. Pre-Miramax influence, he was the guy who made "Mr. Wonderful" and wrote for Jim Henson.

comment #5

Richardson says ...

(I hope that doesn't come off as dismissive of Minghella's talents, which certainly played a vital role; this isn't a case of Harvey inventing an auteur where one didn't exist, like, say, Lasse Hallstrom.)

comment #6

mutinyco says ...

Where did Harvey's eyes go in that photo? He looks like the doctor with the hypo in Jacob's Ladder...

comment #7

Jay T. says ...

I was always disappointed that The Talented Mr. Ripley didn't get more credit... incredible, beautiful film.

comment #8

corey3rd says ...

let me get this right - this jerk says that Anthony was stifled by Harvey because he didn't crank out films at a Jesus Franco speed? If he had an interview with Anthony saying "Harvey kept screwing my prized project and making make this crap....." I can understand the article. But this is just film jerk masturbating on a man's grave.

comment #9

Eric says ...

It's certainly easy to write a piece like this after somebody dies. It would seem out of the blue if the "Harvey did it" theory circulated a couple of weeks ago. There are tons of (living) filmmakers you could randomly single out for this kind of devaluation.

comment #10

Z_Dog says ...

What about "Mr. Wonderful"??

Everyone always forgets about this Minghella masterpiece in the early 90's.

I always thought it had a nice breezy charm about it.

comment #11

p.Vice says ...

How Edelstein continues to be gainfully employed as a film writer is astonishing... this is only the latest entry in a career's worth of clueless writing about cinema. Let's hope the print industry die-off speeds up because I'm looking forward to the day this motherfucker is kicked to the curb.

comment #12

adaml says ...

A stupid piece. Minghella made 6 films, each of which I bet he was immensely proud of, and none of which strike me as even remotely selling out. All are the hallmark of a quality director.

I thought from the intro the gist of this article would be about Weinstein blocking certain projects. At least that would make sense.

comment #13

/3rtfu11 says ...

I'm sorry he's gone. I saw "Cold Mountain" and hated it and "The English Patient" and can't finish it.

Jeff, if you don't like Spielberg-like frauds, how were you ever able to enjoy Minghella?

comment #14

maria says ...

What Jeffrey wrote just that he remeber:

"For now, at least. If he's smart (and he is), he can damage control his way out of this, to some extent. Just downplay the weirdo stuff and focus on the work, the work, the work."

He was talking on Tom Cruise in 2006 after the fall out with Paramount, what your thoughts now Jeff?
I'd like to be positive. For now, at least. If he's smart (and he is), he can damage control his way out of this, to some extent. Just downplay the weirdo stuff and focus on the work, the work, the work."

Isn't what he does since 2006? he doe, but...

comment #15

maria says ...

What Jeffrey wrote just that he remeber:

"For now, at least. If he's smart (and he is), he can damage control his way out of this, to some extent. Just downplay the weirdo stuff and focus on the work, the work, the work."

He was talking on Tom Cruise in 2006 after the fall out with Paramount, what your thoughts now Jeff?
I'd like to be positive. For now, at least. If he's smart (and he is), he can damage control his way out of this, to some extent. Just downplay the weirdo stuff and focus on the work, the work, the work."

Isn't what he does since 2006? he doe, but...

comment #16

Breedlove says ...

I was a big fan of Minghella's work and hate to think that we won't be getting any more movies from him. He filled a very specific niche, making these sweeping period epics based on serious literature. I always eagerly awaited his next movie. Who is going to make movies like that now? Jow Wright, I guess. And you could tell from interviews and stuff that he was a real sweetheart and a gentleman. Sucks.

comment #17

JasonC says ...

I agree with the critic that Truly Madly Deeply was the best but who can say Minghella would have continued to move in that direction? Maybe he wanted to make Oscar-type movies and liked being Weinstein's house director. I don't think the person above who brought up Jesus Franco can be taken seriously though. There are plenty of directors like Stephen Frears who do a prestige film and then a riskier film etc. Minghella didn't go that route. Too bad.

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